The smell of magnolias, sound of turning books pages, and warmth of creamy coffee…

Month: March 2016

Boyz II Men floats through my brain, weaving those sing-song notes in and out of my thoughts. It’s so haaaaaarrrrrdddd to say goooooddddbyyyyye to yesterdayaaayyyyaaa. Sigh.

It really is so hard. An era has come to a close. A chapter in my life is over. Time to turn the page. Time to move on. Time to find… another. But how? Oh, how will I ever find a replacement? Nothing can take its place. It was unique. It was entertaining. It was a part of my weekly life for 8 to 9 weeks of the year…. so, how am I supposed to replace “Downton Abbey”? Sigh.

I know it seems dramatic. If you never watched it— YOU. JUST. DON’T. UNDERSTAND. You’ll NEVER understand. Downton was…. well, it just was. Any fan gets it. The witticisms of the dowager, slicing remarks from Lady Mary, snobbishness of Carson… they are just a part of life, part of the fun.

But I get it. It sounds dull. It doesn’t seem exciting to an outsider.

“What’s your favorite show?”

“Downton Abbey.”

“Oh. What’s that?”

“It’s a show on PBS…” (Your listener already starts to nod off.) “about a family in the early 1900’s. They’re aristocrats…”

“Mmmmhhmmm…” (Starts mentally tuning out.)

“No, really. I know it’s not ‘The Real Housewives’, but it’s SO good!”

“Yeah, yeah. Sure.” (Eyes roll and subject changes abruptly.)

And THAT is why it’s so hard to explain. The depth of the conversations, the meaningful glances, the aloof austerity- all of that is lost in the mere explanation of the show itself.

A completely different world that really did once exist- it is a great place to lose oneself. That’s the appeal of it. It’s not some fictional, non-existent, unrealistic show. It’s REAL. Or, at least, it once was. There once was a family much like that portrayed in the show, who experienced the sinking of the Titanic, the invention of the telephone, the utilization of cars, World War I, the jazz era, and so much more.

The evolution of fashion itself is worth watching the show. I long for a day when I can wear a hat on a daily basis because it’s socially expected (maybe we can bring that back??). A time when modesty was a virtue, and skin remained a mystery. A time when manners and morality was admired rather than obscure. Sigh…

The appeal of the show is manifold. Fashion, family, friendship, loyalty, manners, history…. all of these are reason I will dearly miss this show. So… goodbye. Goodbye Crawley family.